Silver 3
florins of the Revolt of
the Austrian Netherlands

The Netherlands, AD 1790

A breakaway region of the Habsburg
empire

The Habsburg empire occupied a large part of
Europe from the fifteenth century until the First World War
(1914-18), at various times ruling Austria, Hungary, Germany, the
Netherlands, Belgium, parts of Italy, and Switzerland, as well as
Spain and her overseas dominions. Because of this diversity, the
empire was never a fully unified state, and the house of Habsburg
often met resistance to its rule. The Low Countries rebelled in the
sixteenth century, with the northern, largely Protestant provinces
shaping themsleves into a separate Dutch kingdom, while the Roman
Catholic southern provinces (present-day Belgium) remained within
the Habsburg Empire.

In the
eighteenth century the Habsburg empress Maria Theresa (reigned
1740-65) brought a degree of reform to her rule of various parts of
the Empire. However, her son, Joseph II (reigned 1765-90), had a
more uncompromizing attitude to his dominions. This sometimes
provoked hostility and rebellion, as in the southern Netherlands.
This coin is an example of a silver 3
florin piece that was
issued during the short period (1789-90) when the southern
Netherlands became independent of Habsburg
rule.